John l



I 2 Sheets-Sheet 1. J'. L. LAY.

E-lectro-Magnetic Steering Apparatus for Submarine.

. Torpedo-Boats No. 198,126. P ai'ented Dec. 11,1877

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. L. LAY.

Eleotro-Magnetic Steering Apparatus for Submarine Torpedo-Boats No.198,126. Patented Dec. 11,187?

D A 2 I $.11.- :::-1 8

B I o o a a m K J UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN L. LAY, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN ELECTROMAGNETIC STEERING APPARATUS FOR SUBMARINE TORPEDO-BOATS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 19$,l26, dated December 11. 1877; application filed March 25, 1872.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN L. LAY, of Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State ot New York, have invented an improved mode of steering boats from a point outside of said vessel, of which the following is a specification:

This invention relates to a method of steeriug boat-svfrom' a fixed point outside of the said boat or vessel, bymeans of electric eurrentstransniitted from ashorebattery through an insulated telegraphic cable, acting, through the medium of a battery carried on the boat, upon the steering mechanism so as tobring the control of the direction of the boat under the-influence ofan operator on shore, or at some fixed point of departure.

My invention consists in combining, with an ele'ctro-magnetie apparatus on board the boat,

- and operated from the shore, mechanism -for shifting the steering apparatus as the electric currents are reversed; also, incombining with the'steering apparatus a cylinder and piston, the'latterderiving motion from an expansible gas or vapor, and an electromagnetic appa ratus for shifting the valve of said cylinder, and therebymoving the piston from one part of the cylinder to another at the will of the operator.

I haveillustrated in the annexed drawings one mode of carrying into effect the principle of my invention; but it is obvious that the parts may be variously modified without departing at all from said princi ple. Thus a great variety of electromagnetic apparatus may be I readily adapted to this service; so, also, may' the mode of applying the power be varied.

The valve-gear may be changed by any skillful on the ends of the bar E.

the steering apparatus; Fig; 3' isavertical' section of the same.

The same letters in all the figures indicate identical parts.

I have illustrated my invention as applied to arudder, A, having attached, on opposite sides of' the rudder-post, two tillers, A A. The ropes B B"areattached to'the tiller'A,

and, extending on proper pulleys, are respect- .ively attached to the opposite ends of the piston'rod C, which extends through both heads oi the cylinder 0. It is obvious that as'thepiston is forced from one end of the cylinder to the center, or to the other end, the rudder will be brought to one of the three positions of steady,-" port,-" or starboard. The normal position-of the rudder is at steady, where it is held by the tension of the springs D attached to the tiller A, the piston being in the center of the cylinder, and both eduction-ports of the rotary val yo 0 open. ported valve-seat, and is made to oscillate so as to admit the steam, condensed air, or gas used for actuating the piston, to one end of the cylinder or the other, by means of a valverod, 0, on which is a slotted crank-arm, C, engaging a pin on the sliding bar E, which, in its turn, is actuated by the hinged arm F attached to an armature of soft iron, F, placed between the electro-magnets G" G", where it is held midway between the magnets, when they are inactive bythc tensio n of spiral springs It is obvious that, if the magnet G is electrizcd by passing a current through its inductioircoil, the armature will be attracted to it, and, through the mechanism described, the valve C will at the same time be'so shifted as to admit the steam, &c., to one end of the cylinder, and force the piston to the opposite cnd,thereby shifting the rudder. XVhcn the current is cut off, and the magnet G becomes dcmagnetized, the armature will be brought to its central position by its springs, and the eductioirports opened so that the springs D may bring back the piston to its central positiomandthe rudder to steady. If the magnet G is in like manner charged, the urn tture will be drawn to it, shifting the valve so as to admit steam, to the other end of the cylinder, and bringing the rudder into the This valve is on athree- 

